Epcot Construction Update: Summer 2018
Continuing updates from our Walt Disney World trip, Epcot is our next stop. There are currently several projects under construction: Guardians of the Galaxy and Ratatouille attractions, the Space Restaurant, and Skyliner gondola transportation. Despite this, it doesn’t feel intrusive to the guest experience.
This visit to Epcot was our first in a while outside of Festival Season. We enjoy these events (especially Festival of the Arts) but it was nice to see Epcot free of temporary booths and vending spaces, and have a bit more breathing room in World Showcase.
Sometimes you just want the lighter, lower-calorie “Diet Epcot” available for a limited time in June and July. In this update, we’ll take a stroll around Epcot to take a look at how work is progressing on all of the projects, and also share some other random changes that are probably months old, but are still new to us…
Aside from experiencing the lower-calorie “Diet Epcot,” our main reason for spending a few evenings in the park this trip was to see IllumiNations as many times as possible before it’s retired. I anticipate having one more chance to see it, but I also anticipated an official announcement on the rumored IllumiNations replacement and interim show by now, so who knows. Better safe than sorry.
For what it’s worth, I’ve received a few messages since our rumor post about IllumiNations: Window on the World (which likely won’t be the show’s final name), and it’s absolutely happening. Tech work has already started and it’s a poorly-kept secret at this point.
In the past, we’ve said that right now is the “calm before the storm” at Epcot. That’s still partly true, as the Epcot Central Spine Redesign project that will re-imagine the aesthetics of Future World has yet to begin, as have other smaller projects meant to inject new life into World Showcase.
This is also because the biggest projects at Epcot are removed from guest areas. The show building going up for the Guardians of the Galaxy coaster is colossal, but it’s outside the existing footprint of the park’s boundaries.
It’s true that there are construction walls around the old Universe of Energy building, but it’s not as if guests are stumbling by that pavilion in the normal course of their visit to Epcot. The out of the way location of both Universe of Energy and Wonders of Life might have something to do with the lack of popularity of both pavilions during their existences, but that’s another topic for another day.
The Guardians of the Galaxy coaster seems like a good place to start with this update. Here are a couple photos shot from the monorail:
I had seen a handful of photos of this on social media and had assumed the apparent size was deceiving. It’s not. This thing is going to be huge.
(We’ve also heard that it has a gargantuan budget to match–significantly larger than any ride currently under construction that’s not part of Galaxy’s Edge.)
Next to the old Universe of Energy building, work continues at the old Wonders of Life building. We reported on the Wonders of Life rumors a few months ago, and I haven’t heard anything since.
I have heard that everything for Epcot that’s not already greenlit is in flux, with additions/cuts/changes to the scope of several previously unannounced projects. My guess is that there is a long term plan for Wonders of Life as attraction space (it is definitely not the Space Restaurant), but what the substance of those plans may not yet be certain.
It’s hardly exciting news, but a few menus around Epcot have been refreshed, including at Sunshine Seasons and Electric Umbrella.
My go-to sandwich at Sunshine Seasons is now different, and is somewhat reminiscent of what was there almost 10 years ago. (I’m a fan of the new version.)
As for the Epcot Central Spine Redesign, the last we heard was that there were multiple competing ideas for how this aesthetic re-imagining would occur, which is why only vague concept art was shared at the D23 Expo last year.
As you might’ve noticed, that was the one piece of concept art that was not released on the Disney Parks Blog, which was an intentional omission. (The art below is a photo I took of the art on the screen at the event.)
The commonality to all Epcot Central Spine Redesign plans was the demolition of both Innoventions buildings. Beyond that, there’d be large swaths of open space that would be modeled after the Gardens of Imagination at Shanghai Disneyland. (Not in substance, but in style.)
Irrespective of all that, we expected further developments on the Epcot Central Spine Redesign by now. We haven’t heard anything about the Epcot Central Spine Redesign in a while–no rumors, nothing.
If this redesign is still slated to occur–and we really hope that it is–work will need to begin on it at some point later this year or early next year to finish by Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary. Even if each half of Innoventions is demolished and the work is done in stages, the Epcot Central Spine Redesign will present a massive impediment to guest flow.
The bigger concern for Disney is that the demolition might impact Epcot’s Food & Wine Festival, which spills out into Future World more and more each year. Presumably this project will occur through at least one Food & Wine Festival (and that’s the best case scenario if work starts immediately after the festival ends), and will require shifting some event offerings into the Wonders Festival Center or into World Showplace.
Speaking of which, we believe the above work is for Epcot’s Food & Wine Festival, which starts next month.
Now let’s move on to World Showcase…
Before we start with construction, I’ve got to give a quick “plug” to the Signature Poutine (“French Fries with Canadian Cheddar and Bacon Sauce with Cheese Curds”) at Refreshment Port between the entrance to World Showcase and the Canada pavilion.
I’ve mentioned this snack when I updated our Snacking Around the World Showcase post, but haven’t done a new post or review of the poutine. This is one of my Walt Disney World guilty pleasures. I wouldn’t say it’s high quality, but I think it tastes incredible (Sarah disagrees). Perhaps not the best dish for a humid summer day, but I enjoy it so much that I ordered it anyway!
Speaking of non-construction updates, there’s also some World Cup-inspired soccer merchandise.
I have zero interest in soccer, but I think this is cool. It’s nice to see Walt Disney World target special events and niche interests (calling the World Cup a “niche interest” is a huge understatement, but you get the idea).
From across World Showcase Lagoon, a couple of construction projects are somewhat visible. The first is the Ratatouille: the Adventure trackless dark ride show building, which is partially visible above Morocco.
This will be accessible from a new avenue behind the France pavilion.
Behind France, a couple of pillars for the Skyliner gondolas are visible.
This has been pretty controversial on social media, and I’ll have a full “take” on this in our Skyliner update later this week. Suffice to say, the Skyliner support is hardly the most prominent sightline issue behind France. While I hope an effort is made to conceal this (and maybe elevate the Eiffel Tower), I have a difficult time getting too worked up over a couple pillars when the damage was already done ~20 years ago.
The Stave Church Gallery in the Norway Pavilion is now showcasing an exhibit called “Gods of the Vikings.” This features legendary Norse gods and goddesses, including Thor and Loki, who influenced the ancient Vikings of Scandinavia.
It’s a pretty clever way to weave some Marvel ‘inspiration’ into Epcot that would be forbidden if the comic or film characters were used. The historical versions of Thor, Odin, Freyja, and Loki are all pretty cool, and I joked that Disney should just forget the Marvel angle and make an attraction based upon them.
That’s it for this Epcot update. As you can see, a lot is happening here–and it’s happening at a fast pace. Even if we won’t see the most significant fruits of this for a few more years, we should start seeing smaller changes next year. Part of me is disappointed that the new park will barely resemble the EPCOT Center I fell in love with as a kid, but I also think it was long overdue for a refresh. We’ll start doing these construction updates much more regularly, especially now that work is so clearly visible at Epcot.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of the current state of Epcot, and its construction projects? Thoughts on the colossal show building for Guardians of the Galaxy, and how/whether it’ll be concealed? What about Ratatouille or the Skyliner? Have you tried the poutine? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Epcot needs to do an overhaul on the movie at Independence Hall in USA. It hasn’t changed in 20 years and it’s too long. I agree with changes to the Illumination show. I was somewhat disappointed by the same lame show of 20 years ago.
When we were in “Norway” last week, there were people who thought that The Stave Church had a meet and greet for Marvel’s Thor and Loki. They were so disappointed when I told them they were wood carvings of the Old Gods…
When we were in “Norway” last week, there were people who thought that The Stave Church had a meet and greet for Marvel’s Thor and Loki. They were so disappointed when I told them they were wood carvings of the Old Gods…
I would love to see Armenia in World Showcase!
I hope the Imagineers will continue to mind the viewpoints throughout World Showcase so that the Ratatouille attraction doesn’t look out of place when looking at Morocco, similar to how they were cognizant of the Tower of Terror and made the back of it fit with a Moroccan design. I’d hate for the ambiance of World Showcase to be disrupted by huge attractions and really get the theming out of place.
Prediction: the Epcot “spine” redesign will absolutely in no way happen unless it somehow involves an increase in retail space or traffic through existing retail spaces. Obliterating Innoventions accomplishes neither goal. If a clever Imagineer figures out how to convert the entire plaza into one giant Mouse Gear, however, I could see THAT getting approved…
What I had previously heard was that the new gardens in the central spine would be able to house festival dining space, so there’s that.
I’m disappointed with the degradation of Innoventions that has led to its possible removal. It was such great fun back in the 80s with tons of interactive things to do but they never kept it up. The only thing in there during our last trip in 2001 was the Segway tours (which cost extra) and a design your own roller coaster ride (which my aunt rode but I didn’t b/c I don’t enjoy puking). The rest was pretty much wasted space. There needs to be more to do in future world. I love Universe of Energy but it’s gone. I can’t ride Mission Space or the hang gliding thing they added bc I get motion sick.
I would love to see pavillions representing Australia, New Zealand and other Pacific nations (Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti). It would be fascinating to see how WDW’s Imagineers could incorporate such cultures into World Showcase and inspire visitors. It is always fun learning about other people’s traditions and way of life.
Is that a bridge across the world showcase lagoon?? That would be awesome! Would save me so much time getting to ADRs or a quicker exit after the fireworks.
If you look, the area you think is the world showcase lagoon is really the pond the monorail crosses as it circles back to the station. The bridge is the existing bridge from future world to world showcase. It does look as though they are going to create an island of sorts with an additional walkway coming in from the left.
No updated rumors on the potential for the hotels out front?
I’m just thinking as the RunDisney Races are held in Epcot and that is where the races start and end, will people have to run through construction. Or this sounds crazy but moving to a different park.
I would love to see some additions to World Showcase. In particular, I wish they had an Egypt Pavilion, Brazil, Peru, and Greece. I think those need updates.
That would be awesome. Egypt…wow. And Brazil….yessss
Brazil had a temporary position in World Showcase during the Millennium building along with Israel & something else. They shoved 3 counties together into one building with a soccer game, a 3D motion movie & a small food court.
So we still don’t know what’s happening to the Imagination Pavilion then. That’s not much news really. I’m really hoping that he Dreamfinder makes his return with Figment with a newly imagined story for them. Inside Out can just take it all out stay out! If they must stay, try the abandoned Cranium Command at the Wonders if Life. That’s a lot more fitting!
That is exactly what I was thinking. If they still have the “guts” of that room it would be perfect for Inside Out. Leave Figment alone-or rather just make him what he was when he debuted!
I’m hopeful that any redesign of Future World will take some cues from Tomorrowland in Shanghai. That land was one of the bigger surprises of our visit. We found ourselves returning again and again to take in the vibe, particularly at night. It manages to feel classic Tomorrowland while also being current and alive. We loved how the musical landscape pulses throughout the area. A combination of a Gardens of Imagination-style layout with those Tomorrowland vibes could be a truly wonderful new Future World.
Yes!!! We loved Tomorrowland in SHDL and couldn’t keep from thinking it had an EPCOT feel. It was indeed fantastic at night, especially with TRON as the backdrop.
The photo of the poutine was fascinating to us (Canadians) – poutine is served literally everywhere up here and it almost always comes with a dark gravy. Neither my husband nor I can recall seeing it with a white/cream sauce and I want to know how one makes a sauce from bacon. Occasionally it’s sold here with a marinara sauce. We’re not sure if we’re curious enough to try this version when we go to Epcot next but we’re really glad you like it!
It’s not “real” poutine. The white sauce is cheddar cheese soup, the same that you will find at Le Cellier.
Great Updates Tom. We just returned to Michigan from our week long trip on July 8th. No idea you were a fellow Michigander Tom! Cool!! I’m looking forward to some new attractions at Epcot. I’m super sad I didn’t hang out for Illuminations on the 4th of July, I wasn’t aware it was on the chopping block. Weather was awful that night and it kept getting delayed. I believe the show happened but I’m not sure what time. Darn it!!
It started about 9.45pm in the end…. because that was the time we got to our car and realized that it had started….! We had hung around until about 9.30pm, but weren’t convinced about the delay and weighed Toy Story Mania fast passes against it!
That weather on the 4th (and on the 3rd too, let’s be honest!) was certainly something!
Hey Tom, have you ever had a real Poutine? Like one from Québec? If not, you should definitely add it to your bucket list 🙂
The biggest problem with the view over ‘France’ is the non-Disney themed Swan and Dolphin hotels.
So Ratatouille is going to be a trackless non-coaster ride? That’s disappointing.
If they do tear down the old Communicore East and West buildings, that’ll be a complete disruption of Future World!
If Ratatouille is going to be anything like Pooh’s Hunny Hunt in Tokyo, you will be hard pressed to be disappointed. I like the thrill of coasters, but hard to fit in good IP theming. Hunny Hunt is phenomenal and I have high hopes for this ride!
I believe this Ratatouille is going to be the exact same ride as the one at Disneyland Paris. I’m sure you can get some YouTube video of it. It’s a nice ride. The restaurant is better!
I heard the Ratatouille ride coming to EPCOT is an exact clone of the one in Paris, which is AWESOME fun 🙂 I’m sure you’ll like it. We can get our big thrills on the GoTG ride.
Any idea when the space restaurant will open?
Thanks for the photos. I have to say – the skyliner towers and Ratatouille building are *not* what jumps out at me behind the France pavilion. Although I think that walking across the bridge from the UK is the only place where the Eiffel tower forced perspective “works”, and perhaps the skyliner will interfere with even that.
I know not much has been released on the GotG coaster, but living in the roller coaster capital of the world, I’m curious how it’s “massive” scale will compare with non-Disney coasters.